Avalanche Gerat Affair
by jkkitty1
Summary: A year into their partnership, Napoleon and Illya investigate sudden avalanches in Switzerland.  Thrush attempts to uses the beautiful country to increase their bank account while one of Napoleon's favorites Thrush women pits herself against them.
1. Chapter 1

Avalanche Gerat Affair

The two agents sat waiting for their boss, Alexander Waverly, to begin the briefing. Napoleon Solo Number 1 Section 2 and CEA of Uncle Northwest played with his fingers.

Illya Nichovetch Kuryakin, Napoleon's partner, Section 2 number 2 was reading the file in front of him. Both knew nothing would begin until Waverly's pipe was lit.

Finally when the pipe was lit, he addressed his two agents, "Gentlemen what do you know about avalanches?" Napoleon was surprised at the question, but then in this business you never knew where the next assignment would lead. He glanced at his partner of just over a year and hurried to answer the question before Illya did.

"Well sir, an avalanche is a sudden, unexpected movement of a large amount of snow down the slope of a mountain," he grinned at his partner—'Let him beat that,' he thought.

Waverly nodded towards his CEA to acknowledge his statement, "Mr. Kuryakin do you have anything to add?"

"Well sir, what Mr. Solo said is true; however, there is a lot more to an avalanche than that as there are many types," taking a teaching tone that often served to irritate his partner.

"Avalanches are classified by their characteristics that include the type of snow involved, the nature of the collapse, the sliding surface, the trigger of the avalanche, and the slope angle, direction, and elevation," he said with a grin toward his partner.

"Very good, and…" Waverly looked down toward his information and missed the sour expression Solo gave his partner while mouthing the words 'Smartass'. "Ah here it is. What can you tell us about a dry avalanche?"

"A dry or powder snow avalanche occurs when the upper solid sheet of snow causes the softer under snow to give way. This type of avalanche takes less time to reach its maximum speed of 60 to 80 miles per hour within 5 seconds then a wet snow avalanche making it almost impossible to escape it path."

"It comes down in waves instead of just one large piece of snow, each covering the next making it very dangerous. It is extremely deceiving as it looks light and fluffy but beneath the misty dust cloud is the "core" of the avalanche—that is a solid mass that moves as a liquid mix of 70% air and 30% ice particles because of this many people describe this type of avalanche as beautiful."

"Thank you Mr. Kuryakin."

"Sir, I don't see what this has to do with us. Aren't avalanche very common?" Napoleon asked.

"Quite common. However, lately there has been a rash of them in an area which have very few normally-most unusual."

"I can see where that would be troubling, but why is UNCLE involved," Napoleon asked.

"Before each occurrence, the area received instructions to leave a money tribute to prevent it. Of course no one took this threat seriously until after the occurrences. Your assignment is to find out what is behind these sudden avalanches; here is the information from the previous ones. Your plane for the Zermatt, Switzerland leaves in an hour. Good luck, gentlemen and keep me informed. If there are any updates that you need, I will have you notified immediately."

…

As the two men left Waverly office, Napoleon poked his partner, "Where do you get all this miscellaneous useless information from anyways?"

"I would not say it was useless, after all I was able to explain what Waverly asked," he said rather sharply, "Beside no information is ever useless."

Continuing the discussion as they entered their office "You still didn't tell me where you get it all."

"I have always enjoyed learning and reading; plus I do have lots of free time to read Napoleon, when you are out chasing women on assignments."

Napoleon looked over at Illya, this man who no one would every guess was extremely dangerous when he needed to be, was a conflict of personalities. Scientist and agent were only a few of the personalities he could portray when needed.

When Illya first came to UNCLE and was partnered up with him many of the other agents had given him their sympathies for having to work with the Communist. Now, many of those same agents looked forward to working with the Russian when the opportunity arose.

"Okay, oh fountain of information, where is Zermatt?"

Illya chuckled, "Zermatt is a township in the district of Visp in the German-speaking section of the canton of Valais in Switzerland" seeing Napoleon's eyes rolling upwards. "For you in might be easier just to say that it is at the bottom of the Matterhorn."

"You couldn't just say it that way to begin with," exasperation Napoleon began pulling out equipment from his desk that he felt he might need.

"And allow you to have nothing to complain about?"

"Okay, Okay. So what is so important about Zermatt?" Napoleon asked as they headed for the roof's heliport.

"The three of the communities around it, Täsch, Visp and Brig have been hit by avalanches after the warnings." Illya summarizing the file that he held as they entered the copter but the noise of it kept them from further discussion.

….

After checking in and boarding the airplane, they continued their discussion. "All the villages lay low on the mountain side, and have been partially destroyed after refusing the demand for ransom. According to the file, it is believed that Zermatt will be soon the next community hit."

Napoleon looked at his watch; it was 5 pm that meant it was 11pm at their destination. "We should be arriving about 7am their time, so we better catch a nap on the flight. Of course, you never have a problem with that do you?" He was always surprised with his partner's ability to sleep anywhere at any time.

…

As Zermatt was car-free, they arrived by the local train at 7am in the dark as the shadows from the mountains prevented sunlight from shining on the old village until later.

After departing the train, they walked straight to the guesthouse that had been reserved for them. The car-free mandate of the village would be a disadvantage but if needed outside the village, UNCLE had left them a car parked in the lot at Tasch.

Although the absence of cars might present a problem, no one had that advantage as a result most of people were walking, riding horse drawn sleds and cable cars, or taking one of the two trains to travel to the areas around the village. The agents found one significant point in their favor, as there was helicopter service if needed.

As the sun rose, they were able to see that Zermatt was encircled by mountains over 13,000 feet high with the Matterhorn and its bent-over top visible outside their window.

They unpacked before walking into town for breakfast. As they entered along the Bahnhofstrasse, the town's main street, they were surprised to see it was already busy.

The village retained its original rustic weathered-brown chalets sprinkled across the valley intermingled with inviting shops.

Searching for breakfast, they came across a restaurant that was serving a buffet with cereals, eggs, several kind of charcuterie (cold meats), authentic Swiss cheeses, homemade jam, rye bread and butter Gipfli (crest).

After breakfast, they explored the rest of the town that consisted of three main roads with traditional buildings surrounding them. Within thirty minutes, a visitor would be able to reach wherever they wished in the village.

From these main streets, they followed the Hinterdorf that lead off the main streets. It was made up of twisting alleys that were lined with dark-wooden buildings interspersed with traditional barns. The barns were raised on stone discs to prevent mice from gorging on the harvest.

…

As they arrived at the end of the Hinterdorf surrounded by fields of sheep and were turning to go back toward their house when they heard bullets zipped pass. This caused them to dive into the snow before being hit; pulling their guns while searching for the shooters.

When no further bullets came their way after a few minutes, they rose up slowly. Napoleon offering a hand to his partner pulling him up, then they careful made their way back to the twisting alleys they had just left.

As they made their way back toward the Bahnhofstrasse, they returned their guns to their holders before blending into the other visitors walking the street. Instead of heading toward their house, they entered some of the shops along the street to ascertain if they were still being shadowed. When they were convinced that no one was trailing them, they careful returned to the guesthouse.

"Do you get the feeling some yellow belly Thrushes don't want us here, Illya?"

"I would think at least someone knows we are here. Perhaps that was just a warning that we should not investigate further."

"Well tovarisch, I've never been one to be dissuaded by warnings. At least we know we're on the right track. It's just on the track of what?"

Napoleon contacted Waverly, "Sir, we were fired on while exploring the town but didn't see anyone. Have you any other reports of demands in this area?

"There are two witnesses that you will meet up with tomorrow. First, you'll meet Mr. Johannes Leuthold at the train station in Brig at 10-tomorrow morning; then Miss Annaliese Brilhart at 2 pm at the hotel in Täsch. Gentlemen. I've been informed that these are the only two survivors who claim to have any information from the avalanche areas. Be careful."

Napoleon replaced his communicator joining his partner who had pulled out the map of the area.

"We can reach both places along this trail by traveling on the shuttle to Tasch, pick up our car then drive another 50 minutes up to Brig to meet Leuthold at 10. After that meeting, we can have lunch and still have enough time to meet Miss Brilhart at 2pm. I would suggest that you dress warmly."

Illya said smiling, "I know how much you hate cold weather. I would not want the little lady to see you all red from the cold."

He gave his partner a frosty look, "Funny, Kuryakin. I'll remember your concern for me, the next time we're in the desert and you want my help."

Illya continued with a smirk on his face knowing how much his friend hated the cold, "I think it would be wise if one of us talk to the witness, while the other one checks out the site."

"I'll take the witness; you examine the sites," knowing that it would be warmer inside than on the mountain.

"Okay, Napoleon, I know the weather would have nothing to do with your decision," chucking, "I will do another check outside before we retire." He said as he walked toward the door, only to be hit by a flying hat.

"You might need that," Napoleon grinned as his partner looked back at him. "Don't want someone shooting at that golden target of yours."

AUTHOR NOTE: ** All description of the towns and places of Villages in as true to fact as possible.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The men arrived at the Brig train station early the following morning where they found the countryside similar to Zermatt with snowcapped mountains surrounding the village but the recent avalanche left areas of the mountain bare of snow.

Arriving early to check out the site, they found it clear of any unwanted recognizable visitors so decided to have some breakfast across the way at the outdoor restaurant so they were able to keep an eye on the train station and surrounding area. Illya ordered the buffet for them as the unique German dialect used in this part of the county was unfamiliar to his partner.

As the time edged closer to 10, Illya was looking across the road and noticed as a small man came around the corner looking over his shoulder and acting frightened. "Must be our witness, Napoleon," he said nodding to the man before he went across the street advancing toward Leuthold, who was the survivor of the Brig avalanche.

Illya, slowly to not scare the man more than he was already, approaching him while calling his name.

The man turned and pulled out a small gun. "Show me some ID," he demanded as his hand shook.

Illya removed his ID, displaying it to the man, who still held onto the gun that was waving all over.

"Calm down Mr. Leuthold. My name is Illya Kuryakin and my partner, Napoleon Solo is sitting over there," nodding toward the restaurant slowly while moving closer to the frightened man. When close enough, he reached out and grabbed the gun, "We do not want this going off by mistake; come with me."

He led the man to where Napoleon was sitting, "What is the problem, Mr. Leuthold?"

The man looked around the area with panicked eyes, "The last couple of days someone has been following me. Then last night somebody tried to break into my room, after which I received a call that said not to talk to anyone. I need protection before I talk to you two." Leuthold glared at the two agents, arms across over his chest, and mouth shut tightly.

Napoleon nodded to his partner as they directed the man into the hotel next door. After he had talked to the manager and shown his ID, they were directed to a back room where they could talk without interruption.

….

Illya brought in some richly flavored mocha coffee, hoping its calming effects would help. Once the three had sat down; they gave Leuthold time to relax. "We can get you to a safer place sir if you would like but we also need to get the information that you have as quickly as possible," he offered.

The frightened man looked around the room with its rich red velvet drapes covering the closed windows. "You promise to get me to a safe place?" he still seems unsure. The agents nodded their confirmation.

"I was waiting on the side of the slope for my friends, when I heard a loud whistling sound. It had to be a very high pitch as only a few others seemed to hear it," he shivered as he looked at them and went on to explain, "I often hear sounds others cannot."

"Anyways, I started to look around for the source of the sound, when I saw the man and woman standing over to the side. They had a black box with wires coming out of it connected to a microphone type thing that they were pointing at a spot high above them."

"Then, I heard the sound of snow starting to move and began to run away from the area. I was able to get to a warming house, just as the snow came passing by it."

"Did you see what happen to the man or woman?"

"Mr. Solo, right?" Napoleon nodded in the affirmative, "They put the box in a bag and left right before the snow started on a snowmobile."

"Can you give us a description of either of the people?"

"The woman was very sexy looking, almost white hair….." the sound of a bullet shattered the window behind Leuthold and the man went down, dead before he hit the floor.

Both agents hit the ground, guns out but by the time they wriggled to the window no one was out there.

"Choryt, he is dead," Illya stood up after checking Leuthold over. "Someone did not want him talking to us."

"At least we were able to some information before they killed him. Appears he was correct about them following him, but did they know we were coming to talk to him. I think we better make sure that Miss Brilhartis is moved to a safe house until we can get there."

Napoleon took out his communicator, "Open Channel D, Mr. Waverly please."

When Waverly responded, he continues. "Sir, we met with Leuthold but he was killed before he could finish telling us what he saw or heard."

"How much information were you able to obtain before he was killed?" Although he sounded cold about the witness' death, both men knew he was concerned not only about an innocent being killed but all the other who might die if they did not stop this Thrush plot.

"He explained about a sound he heard and then two people he saw with a device that he was able to describe, but before he could give us a complete description of the people involved, he was killed. Could you notify our people to put a guard Miss Brilhart until we get there? We will be leaving right now, and should be able to be there within an hour or two."

"All right, Mr. Solo. I suggest you and Mr. Kuryakin watch out for problems as they seem to know that you are there," the following click ended the conversation.

….

The men hurried to their car and quickly pulled away heading back toward Tasch. The roadway ran next to the railroad tracks on one-side and mountain valleys on the other.

As Illya tore along the roadway, Napoleon said, "I would like to get there in one piece if you don't mind, tovarisch."

"Perhaps you would rather drive," he shot back, "These roads are not the all that easy to maneuver on."

Napoleon held up his hands in defense, "Just making an observation. What do you think about this?"

Illya thought for a few moments, "The whistling sound must have come from some type of devise that has been refined for high frequency assaults, but what he described seems too small to do more than a little damage at a time. If they want to cause major avalanches, they would need a much bigger version of it."

"We are talking about Thrush and they always seem to come up with the impossible. How would something like this work?"

Before he could answer, they heard a whang as the back window blow apart that echo through the canyons of the mountains, "The car behind us is coming up fast," he yelled.

Napoleon pulled his special and aimed at the following car, but because of the speed and the winding roads, it was hard to get a bead on their car. As they took the next curve, a car was setting across the road blocking their way.

Although Illya attempted to pull up, the car fishtailed on the black ice then went over the embankment and down the slope stopping only when they hit a boulder.

Both men were able to get their doors open, and bail out into the high bushes that they were cutting though before the car hit a rock and exploded. They stayed hidden until their assailants from the car turned to leave. Both men watched a retreating figure of a particular attractive blonde-haired woman as she climbed into the Thrush car.

The men checked over themselves but bruises, cuts and some pain was all they had from the crash. "You know, tovarisch you driving isn't any better, but you crashes are improving."

"Next time, you drive!" Illya fired back moving the various muscles in his body to make sure everything was working. "Do you wish to call Waverly or do I?"

Napoleon shrugged his shoulders and reached for his communicator, "Open Channel D." After explaining the situation, he asked that someone pick them up; Waverly assured them that support would be there within an hour.

Before signing off Waverly said, "I suppose the car is another total lost?"

"Yes sir."

"Tell Mr. Kuryakin that is the third one this month. We do need to watch the budget," then clicked off.

Napoleon gave at his partner a grin that said 'I told you so.'

"You recognized the woman did not you?" Illya glared at his partner turning the conversation away from his driving to the woman they saw.

"We shouldn't jump to conclusions. After all she was quite a distance away."

"Oh come on. How many Thrush agents do we know who have white blonde hair, slinky dresses and furs? I do not understand how you can be with her. She is either seducing you, torturing you, or trying to kill you."

"It the chase that makes it interesting, not the final outcome," he said trying to defend his enjoyment of the Thrush women that he had bedded.

Illya gave his partner a disapproving look, as the communicator started to beep stopping any further discussion.

"Mr. Solo, we will be at your location in five minutes," they were informed, "It a dark green Dampf-Kraft-Wagen. We'll pull over and flash our lights two times when we get to your mileage marker."

"That was fast," Napoleon said as he signed off; the two climbed to the mileage marker. It was always dangerous when being picked up by agents you didn't know personally, but this time the arrangements seemed safe.

….

When the car pulled up at the sign and flashed it lights, the UNCLE agents came out of the underbrush approaching it in the crusty snow that crunched under their feet. Two men were in the front and one in the back.

Napoleon lifted his eye looking at his partner—three men to pick them up? Illya also was reevaluating the situation, but before either man could do anything before two of the men stepped from the stopped car pointing machine guns at them.

"Into the car gentlemen," the one gunman directed. Their guns were taken from them as they were pushed into the back seat by their guards, the machine guns never leaving their directions. "We were told to keep you alive, but that does mean we can't take you in worse for wear."

Illya sat back against the back of the seat, crossed his arms over his chest, and turned to Napoleon, "Seems like we will be able to see which one of us was right about the woman," he said as he closed his eyes cutting off any answer.

A few kilometers up the road the car they were riding in fell in-between two other similar cars. Napoleon pushed against his partner's shoulder causing him to open his eyes. After seeing the other cars, he shook his head with a sigh and closed his eyes again, "Not our day," he mumbled.

The car stopped in front of an ancient old villa. "All right you two get out on difference sides of the car," guns once more pointed at them. Although they had only been partners for a short while, the hierarchy of Thrush had come to respect their skills, and when apprehended their capturers ensured that they were carefully handled.

Each man had guns aimed at him, while they were searched and all their equipment removed. Next, they were taken to a cell and pushed against a wall where their wrists were clicked into manacles but not attached to chains so that they were free to wander the room. "Enjoy the view," one of the guards said laughing as he slammed the door shut leaving them alone.

"Well at least the surroundings are better than normal. Clean and warm cell, comfortable looking cots, even proper toilets and running water, wonder what we did to earn such nice treatment?" Napoleon said sitting on the cot smiling at his partner.

"Or who you know?" Illya mumbled as he examined the cell. They lay on the cot waiting for the Thrush to make its next move.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**The door opened, Artie Tjral, a top Thrush executive, entered with Angelique by his side. Her Chanel #5 preceded her to where Napoleon was rising from his cot; she ignored Illya completely who was facing the wall as she walked past him. "Napoleon," he heard her voice slither through the cell. **

"**Oh darling, your suit is ruined. Please tell me that you aren't taking fashion tips from your partner." Angelique slinked across the floor touching his cheek, "You're such a mess." **

"**Angelique my love, you're as enchanting as always. May we ask why you've invited us here and by the way where is here?" **

"**You're outside of Zermatt, of course, one of our houses in this area of the county." **

**She pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket, wetting it in the sink then walked sexy back to him while he watched her every move; she began wiping his face removing the dirt from the accident. After it was clean, she leaned into him kissing him passionately. He nuzzled her face removing a bobby pin as he burrowed into her hair kissing her neck without her knowledge, a skill he was very good at. **

"**Darling really, you know that you've information we need. I'll have you delivered back to your hotel without another scratch if you just tell us where Miss Brilhart is and what Mr. Leuthold told you." **

**Napoleon grinned at her and shook his head 'no' with a look of regret on his face, "Sorry, my love but you know that my boss won't be happy if I told you anything. Tell you what, if you let my friend and I go, we'll call it even." **

**Unwrapping herself from Napoleon, she re-wet the handkerchief and headed toward Illya's cot, "I haven't forgotten you my pessimistic Russian. Perhaps you'ld be more willing to help me out." **

**Illya pulled his face out of her hand as she went to wipe his face, "I do not need you to do that; I have been washing my own face since I was two." **

**She pulled her hand away, threw the handkerchief into his face, and glanced at him with a sneer saying. "Then do it yourself, you ingrate," before turning back to Napoleon. **

"**Unless you give me what I want, we'll have to use some less than comfortable means to get it. Of course, I wouldn't like to see your handsome face get messed up, but your unwillingness to answer my questions will result in both of you encountering a very uncomfortable stay." **

"**So what else is new?" Illya said resignedly. **

**Angelique ignored the Russian's comment, "Just give me the information, darling. I've given you our best cell and would reward you pleasantly for your help. I've even extended this comfort to the sulking Russian." **

**Once again attempting to convince Napoleon to cooperate by giving him an example of what he could expect by nuzzling his neck while rubbing her hands over the more sensitive parts of his body. **

"**Sorry, my love, the answer is still no," he said as he pushed her away. **

"**It's out of my hands now; you're a fool Napoleon; you could have so much more if you were to come and work with me," she turned angry storming out of the room. **

**After she left, Illya looked at Napoleon frustrated, "Do you have to play her games? It is not going to get us out of here?" **

"**Oh you of little faith," he answered holding up the bobby pin. He quickly undid his manacles and then Illya's. **

**Illya used the bobby pin to begin working on the cell door, then once open they glanced in the hall; no guards there. "Something is not right." **

"**It could be easy for once," Napoleon offered for which he received an incredulous look from his partner. "Well let's see how far they'll let us get," and started down the hall. Off to one side they saw their guns and other pieces of equipment sitting on a desk; quickly they picked them up. **

**They were able to get through the hall and out the door before the alarms shrieked in the background, even though it took Thrush longer than normal to arrive. **

**A second 'I told you so' look from Illya was met with "Okay, so they wanted us to escape." They continued down the slope, clothes grabbed by the branches, slipping on the loose dirt and snow on the frozen ground, ducking the bullets flying past their heads. **

**Once they were clear, Illya scowled at Napoleon, "Do you have any doubts now?" **

"**No," both men searched themselves and found a tracer; there was also an additional piece of equipment in their belongings, another tracer. After each was destroyed, they traveled to the outskirts of town before they sat down to rest for a few minutes. "One thing, she did say 'return us' to our hotel' does that mean they don't know where we're staying or is it another trap." **

…**.**

**Later before the men approached their rented house, they examined the area around the town. They were able to spot a few Thrush agents around each of the town's hotels and a few walking around the town. "It seems that we are missed," Illya said as they hid behind the railroad station. **

"**I'm going to check out the house, you look over the grounds," Napoleon said as he led the way to the house. **

"**Okay, I will join you after finish searching out here, be careful." Illya looked toward the sky with it black clouds blending with the shadows of the mountains spreading gloom over the village, "The sun is almost gone; it will be getting dark soon." **

**His partner nodded in agreement; the setting sun with its glittering array of oranges and reds was beautiful but the following darkness was making it difficult to see clearly. **

**As Napoleon approached the door, he opened it carefully pulling his gun from his waistband where he had placed it once they had entered the town. Once inside he saw no one in the living room, he closed the door as he flipped on the light. From the kitchen a number of Thrush agents entered, their guns pointing directly at him. **

"**Mr. Solo, you left without saying good-bye, that truly was impolite," said Tjral waving his hand as a guard stepped forward to relieve the CEA's of his gun, "You left poor Angelique pining for you." **

"**Darling, I'm so disappointed in you. Sit down," she said as she patted the area of the couch next to her, "Where is that dour partner of yours?" **

"**Now, my dear, he'd interfere with the enjoyment of our evening, so let's not worry about him," he sat back folding his right leg over his left and pulled her into his arms ignoring the men around them, "Why don't you get rid of your playmates then we can discuss this privately," kissing her unhurriedly running his hands over her body. **

"**Can we get back to business, Angelique? Mr. Solo," Tjral waved his gun, "Where are Miss Brilhart and your partner?" **

"**I'll make you a deal. You tell me where you avalanche machine is then I'll tell you where my partner is." **

**Tjral slowly shook his head sadly, "Now, Mr. Solo, we both know that isn't going to happen. The information, please!" **

**Napoleon shook his head saying nothing; Tjral glanced toward Angelique who pulled out a syringe loaded with pink liquid. She injected it into his are as he thought, 'new color' then she gave him a kiss as he began to lose consciousness, "Darling, for once why couldn't you cooperate?" was the last thing he heard as the darkness overtook him. **

…**.**

**With binoculars Illya watched the activities in the house moving closer to his car waiting instead of recusing his partner from them figuring that they would lead him to the missing machine. He watched as the dumped an unconscious Napoleon into the waiting car. As they pull away, Illya followed at a discreet distance; his partner had three tracers on him which were all still working well so even if they found one of them, he would have others to follow. **

**The car carrying the CEA pulled off onto a deserted road, where following to close without being seen would be impossible. Illya waited until they had a five-minute lead then followed along a rough roadway that led to a long driveway until he could go no further without being spotted. He then hid the car in a group of trees advancing toward the house along the side of the road gun drawn in case of attack. **

**The car that his partner had been transported in was parked between an old cottage and barn. Even though both structures would look neglected to anyone who was to pass by, there was evidence of repairs and alarms if you knew what you were looking for. **

**He moved closer peeking through the window where he saw Napoleon sitting tied to a chair with a man working him over. Although he wanted to help out his partner, it would defeat the purpose of the game they were now playing. **

**Illya crawled over to the barn avoiding any of the alarms, opening the door while checking inside. Although not sure what he was searching for, the large machine with a smaller version was sitting in front of him on a wooden workbench. Rapidly moving toward it, he reached out touching it as he did, he felt the static of electric current hit his arm; this was it-the device. **

**The alarms started screaming as he pulled the smaller version toward him running toward the door with it the miniature device safely under his arm. Unable to escape back toward the car, he headed toward the slope behind the barn. The door to the house burst open with men running from it rifles in hand following him up the mountain side. **

**One man ran to the barn where he began to change the knobs on the larger structure while others continued to pursue of the UNCLE agent. The freezing cold caused Illya to slip and slide on the ice which was unsteady because of the dry snow in-between the two frozen layers of snow while the group following him continued to reduce the distance between them. **

**Bullets rang out and around the UNCLE agent as he continued to climb further up the slope. He felt one bullet tag his left shoulder making itself known by a burning in his arm and a few minutes later one brushed his right leg slowing him down. There was no place for him to hide, so he continued to climb higher up the rise with the cold air causing him to see his chilled breath with every move. **

**As he glanced back over his shoulder, he saw the group moving back off the slope right before he heard a high frequency sound that Leuthold had described to them. The snow started to shift under his feet, and he began to fall backwards with the moving snow but he continued to hold tightly to the device he had stolen. **

**The snow began to cascade over him, burying him under it. He knew he couldn't get away in time to prevent it from fully covering him. With his one good arm, he began to dig a hole in which he could trap the air he would need. Slowing his breathing while on his knees, he made his body as tall as he could for the extra space it would provide. **

**What seemed like a long time later, he knew that he was now running out of time and breathe unable to claw his way out; the air was nearly gone even though he kept his breathing steady. **

**Finally lying back too exhausted to continue, the snow became tinted red with his blood; he thought back over his life. Soon, he would be with his family-his parents, the twins and little sister, and finally his beloved babushka. **

**Sleep was coming to him almost gently although his mind knew it was the CO2 that was causing the feeling of comfort but he knew there was nothing he could do to save himself; sluggishly he closed his eyes dreaming of the reunion to come.**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

As the guards ran to answer the alarms, Napoleon was left alone tied to the chair. He hurriedly cut the ropes with the small razor in his watch. His gun was lying with the other items from his person on the desk in the other room, which he grabbed as he ran out the door. He followed the men racing up the slope firing in their direction. The few that slowed up, turning back to shoot back at him, he took down.

When he saw the men alter their direction running back down the hill, he called to his partner but the sound coming from the snow above prevented his voice from carrying. He saw the snow beginning to shift then ran in the same direction as the men from Thrush but behind tress to keep out of its path of the snow and enemies keeping an eye on where his partner stood.

He opened his communicator calling for an emergency helicopter with a medical team as the snow began to cover Illya. Napoleon marked the spot where he had gone under hurrying to it as soon as the snow slide passed.

When he reached the point where he believed his partner had last stood, he began to dig scooping the snow out of the way with his bare hands. Soon he felt someone beside him, helping him dig; a military uniform was all he saw.

All he could think of was saving his partner and what Illya had said about victims of a slide. Most who manage to survived the burial only lived 15 minutes because of CO2 poisoning that they were breathing under the snow.

He knew that if his partner had lived through the burial, Illya would have given himself all the extra time he was able to by digging a large space for air but it was now over 20 minutes since he saw him covered.

Then he saw the sight he was hoping to find; Illya's bleached blond hair was peeking through the snow. Others, who he had been unaware of, helped him dig faster while removing the buried man out of the hole still clutching the device in his cold hands.

Examining him, Napoleon saw that although he felt a faint pulse, he wasn't breathing. He realized it was essential to get air moving to save his partner's life so he began to breathe for him.

As all UNCLE agents had all been given courses in Mouth to Mouth breathing within the last year, he cleared Illya's airway starting to breathe in air while pressing on his chest expelling the older air. He knew this would only maintain the vital functions of life until medical treatment arrived, but hoped the helicopter would reach them quickly.

Illya began to cough while Napoleon was giving him another breath. He pushed him away, and opened one eye looking at his partner, "You kissed me; I cannot believe you kissed me," he managed to spit out.

"I have many women who I would rather be kissing instead of you. You ungrateful idiot, it's called CPR, remember that course they made us take," Napoleon defended himself but also knew this banter was a way to relieve the tension the two of them were feeling. Illya attempted to rise but was pushed back down by his partner.

"I can't believe you kissed me," Illya complained again.

"Fine! Have it your way, at least you're breathing now," Napoleon said leaning his buttock on his feet. The noise of the helicopter by the barn stopped any further conversation. The team including medical made their way up the slope to where men were waiting.

The man next to him offered his hand, "I'm Major Gaffner. Hope your friend will be okay; that was an interesting thing you did, we're have to take the course soon."

"Thank you for your help Major; I think he'll be fine now. It's part of our training," he said giving his partner a glaring look, "To help us survive until medical help is available."

The medical team placed an oxygen mask on over Illya's objections, bandaged the leg and arm tentatively, and strapped him to the stretcher before carrying him with the instrument that he still held in his hands back down the hill.

Napoleon took a quick glance into the now empty barn wondering how they had gotten the machine out so quickly but put off any further investigation himself while following Illya into the passenger side of the copter. He left the agents who came with the copter checking out the barn as the two were flown to the medical in Geneva Headquarters.

….

As Napoleon entered medical, he heard his partner arguing with the doctor, "I am fine. Just sign the release so I can get back to work," he was in his normal patient mode, uncooperative.

"Mr. Kuryakin, you're to be observed for the night; you stopped breathing. I won't sign the form until tomorrow morning. Your arm and leg need time to rest plus you need one more unit of blood. Now you can either lay back down, or I can give you a sedative, which will it be?"

Illya looked up and saw his partner coming through the door, "Tell this man…." He began but stopped as Napoleon shook his head.

"Sorry tovarisch, Waverly orders, stay for the night."

Illya lay back down, crossed his hands over his chest glaring at the doctor and his partner.

….

The next morning Napoleon picked up his partner whose arm and leg were rebandaged. Although, Illya was moving a little slower than normal, he'd rather have him by his side than anyone else. They headed to the UNCLE safe house where Miss Brilhart was being held.

On the way their Napoleon said, "I'm not sure she will be able to tell us anything but hopefully we can get some kind of lead to where they took off to. Did you get any impression of what the machine does from your encounter with it?"

"I am not completely sure, but I believe it uses electrical impulses to amplify high frequencies sound waves to loosen the dry snow layer leading to the avalanche. The dry snow under the top layer is very sensitive to sound, and this device seems to take advantage of that principle."

"So let me see if I have it, you wait for a snow storm with a heavy water contents to fall on a light dusty of snow, then use sound to start an avalanche. What happens if there is no light snow layer?"

"Easy, the resorts can create snow for their customers which they do frequency. Heavy wet snow is not ideal for skiing, so actually over 65% of the slopes used for skiing in this area are covered in artificial snow."

They were lost in their own thoughts as they arrived at the safe house. When they walked through the door, Miss Brilhart surprised both of them by coming up to Napoleon then attempted to wrap her arms around his neck, "Oh Mr. Solo, I am so happy to see you; I feel so much safer now."

She was a raven hair beauty with almost black eyes, large and full lips, a cute turned up nose, velvety skin, and a body that didn't quit. Her outfit showed each of her assets to their fullest, which Napoleon took his time examining obviously pleasing the lady.

Illya glanced at her rolling his eyes; another woman falling for his partner's charms or was it something more than that. She seemed too phony for some reason but then many of the women Napoleon dated did.

"I was so frightened after hearing about Mr. Leuthold death. You'll protect me won't you," she said batting her eyes at the dark haired agent.

Napoleon's smile increased holding her hand as they headed toward the couch. "Please call me Napoleon. How did you know who I was?" he asked her, which at least made Illya glad that her charms hadn't stripped his partner's of all his senses.

"Oh, the guards told me who you were, so if anything happened I could identify you and Mr. Kuryakin."

Although her explanation made some since, Illya still didn't trust something about her but then he found trust a hard thing to develop in their line of work. "Miss Brilhart, what can you tell us about the avalanche and the people you saw during the incident."

Her story was almost exactly like the other witness, the sound, the man with a microphone type piece of equipment, and the slow but steady buildup of the noise of snow breaking up before it began moving.

"Nothing else then? Did you hear anything that the person with the microphone said" Napoleon asked as she seemed to have been standing closer to the man then Leuthold had.

"Sorry, Napoleon but all I heard was 'we need to get back to Randa'. I know it not much help but….." she started crying burying her head into his shoulder. After Napoleon settled her down, the two agents left with Napoleon's promise of supper when they were done with the investigation.

….

"Where the hell is Randa?" Napoleon was getting tired of going from one village to another in these mountains. They all looked the same and beginning to hem him in

"It's about 9 km between Visp and Zermatt. It is a very volatile area of this mountain chain, as it has been often struck by natural disasters over the course of the centuries. Seems like the perfect place to try out the machine on a larger scale, as people would not consider an avalanche abnormal in the village," Illya informed him.

In frustration, "Why bother to buy a guide book, I can just ask you. At least this area can be reached by car."

"Really, it was all in the report Waverly gave us Napoleon," smiling Illya paid attention to driving letting his partner fume.

The rest of the short drive to Randa was in silence. As they entered the village, they noticed the surrounding mountains had a tendency to be more ice covered than in Zermitt.

However, the village itself was similar. With its one main street offering inviting shops intermingled with unique, rustic weathered-brown chalets surrounded by twisting alleys interspersed with traditional barns.

"Where do we start?" Illya said more to himself than his partner.

"Well, why don't we see if we can find them in the area? I mean they must get away from their site once in a while." Napoleon offered, "Or as a last resort, we can always allow them to find one of us while the other follows as backup."

"You know I hate that alternative; I always wind up being the one they find and capture usually resulting in bruises and pain."

Although he complained, Illya knew that often it was the only way they were able to locate their enemies hideouts. "Besides, it is your turn. Last time I wound up with a concussion and a broken arm."

When Napoleon started to object, he said, "It is your acquaintance in there not mine" Illya said declining the solution.

"Okay, this time I'll be the bait; does that make you feel better?"

"Why?" uncertain why his partner would suggest this change in strategy.

"It just dawn on me, that we're being led into a trap here."

Illya looked questioningly at him.

"We didn't tell Miss Brilhart about Leuthold death; the men guarding her were told not to say anything about the murder, so how did she know about it. I'm not quite as shallow as you think I'm with women," Napoleon continued look over at his partner.

"Besides, you're much better with explosions than I am, and we'll have to be very careful if we need to blow up this device with the possibility of an avalanche."

"I never said that you are shallow, just not always aware of what is going on around you when you are with women," IIlya grinned at him.

"Okay, let us try finding them first without them seeing us."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**After searching the area for over four hours with no sign of Thrush activity, the partners decided to try their secondary plan. Napoleon sat in an open air cafe close to the edge outlined in bushes sipping his drink, a local beer called Holzfass-Bier that was a malt with a caramel undertone, the stream coming from his breath and the hot drinks of others indicating how cold it was. **

**As Illya notified his partner that he saw two Thrush agents entering the area, he prepared for the upcoming capture. "They're now entering the cafe," he whispered into Solo's earpiece. Although being a sitting duck was not his favor way of finding the enemy, it worked more times than not. **

**Both UNCLE agents watched the men preparing to seize the CEA when they 'discovered' him, "Place your hands up on the table with palms up Solo," one of his adversaries whispered as he leaned close to Napoleon's ear pressing a gun into his back, "We don't want to damage anyone else, do we?" **

**He did as he was told making sure that his hands were away from his sides while lifting them as directed, standing to face them when ordered, then with what appeared like a hug between two old friends his gun was removed from the shoulder holster by one of the men. **

**As he had stood he kicked a backpack under the table with what he hoped the men would take it as an effort to avoid them from seeing it. One of the men motioned him away from the table pulling out the pack after he moved. "Explosives," he informed the principal speaker. **

**Napoleon shrugged his shoulders, "Couldn't leave it in the room, won't want the wrong person finding it," he explained to the men. The men continued to search him without making it obvious. **

**As he planned on being taken, he didn't have his UNCLE special or many of the other items he normally would have been carrying, 'not point in losing them if able to avoid it' he had told his partner. "Your communicator?" the man said hand out for the requested item. **

"**Left it in the room when I came out for a quick beer; didn't think I'd need it as we didn't see any of your people in the area this afternoon," he explained. **

"**Where's your partner?" **

**He shrugged his shoulders, "Sorry, he wanted to go climbing; I didn't." **

**After a fast glance around for Solo's partner, the Thrushmen escorted him to their car handcuffing his hands behind his back when they were out of sight of the main street. As he entered the back seat of the car, he felt the wind of the gun before it hit, sending him into oblivion. **

**Illya watched the men dump his partner into the car once again before he mounted the rented motorcycle to follow. Considerable parts of the road were covered with oversized boulders from a recent slide so it was necessary for him to stay closer to the car then he liked. Within ten minutes the car turned onto a small side road which made it hard to follow without being seen. Once the car disappeared from the site, he slowly started after it. **

…**. **

**As the car pulled into the driveway, Angelique came out of the house fur flying over her shoulder heading toward the vehicle. "Where Kuryakin?" she demanded looking in the backseat, "What did you do to him? I told you to bring Napoleon alive and unharmed not work him over." **

"**We searched but Kuryakin wasn't around; Solo's only knocked out not worked over." The group leader defended himself, "Besides he's an UNCLE agent, so what's the difference." **

"**Bring him inside," she barked leading the way into the bedroom. Once inside she directed that Napoleon should be laid bound on the bed. **

**As he regained consciousness, he smiled as he breathed in her scent while feeling the gentle touch of the cool cloth on his head. "Angelique, my dear, you do know how to torture a prisoner. However, I can't touch you; you're not playing fair," smiling while raising his hand as high as he could to show her his limited movement. **

"**Napoleon, why can't you just join my side so that we could do this all the time? Now darling where, is that irritating partner of yours?" **

**He ignored the question asking one of his own, "How long has Miss Brilhart been working for you?" **

**Gently she kissed him running her finger down his cheek, "Let's not talk about that little upstart. She didn't follow her orders, so won't be with us much longer. Now where's your annoying partner, and where has he hidden our smaller version of the device? I'd rather not resort to having the men get the information from you. Why not make it easier on both of us; that way we can have a little time for other things, darling." **

"**What an enhancing offer, but I must decline; my organization just wouldn't approve." **

**Angelique stood irritated, "Remember I gave you a chance to do this without any damage to yourself. Gentlemen, you may attempt to get the answers we need," looking back over her shoulder at him wishfully, "Just don't ruin that handsome face of his." **

**They grabbed him, 'Come on tovarisch,' he thought to himself while the men pulled him up then holding him firmly in place one of them began to use his fists to convince him to change his mind. **

…**. **

**Illya reached the area just in front of the house tucking his cycle into the woods. As he made his way toward the house, he saw a small building to the left side of it which had sounds coming from it. Detouring to the smaller structure, he opened the disarmed door to find the missing larger device sitting on the table emitting soft pulsations. **

**After examining the shed, he could see that there was no way they were going to be able to get this system out of the building so placed delay charges throughout the shed then backed out heading towards the house where they were detaining his partner. **

**On the way to the chalet, he came across Napoleon's backpack lying in the back seat of the car. Quickly he covered the dome light as he opened the car door grabbing the abandon full bag replacing it with his own empty one. He noiselessly made his way to the house grazing in the window when he felt a cold gun barrel pressing into the back of his head. **

"**Don't stand out in the cold Mr. Kuryakin; join us inside where it's much warmer. Why don't you give me your gun so that mine doesn't go off accidentally?" He handed his special over his shoulder to the men behind him, rested his hands on his head, was padded down then cuffed before being directed toward the front door. **

…**. **

**The group entered the room to find Angelique standing over his partner who was fastened to a chair looking worst from the time he had spent with her. She moved away from him to stand in front of Illya. "Well, well your surly partner did decide to join us after all Napoleon. Where did you find him?" Angelique asked the guard as she walked around the captured agent. **

"**Just coming up to the window with a backpack filled with explosives; seems the little man didn't get time to complete his tasks," he said as he pushed Illya into the chair that was placed behind his knees, knocking him off balance as he sank into it. **

"**Now you unpleasant Russian, you took something that belongs to me; I want it back. We can do this the easy way or the hard way," she said as she grabbed a knife from her thigh sheath slitting open the front of his turtleneck baring his chest then running her hands over it, "Ah, so many muscles hidden away instead of allowing women to see who you really are." **

**He pulled his body away from her hands the best he could, "I think you have the wrong one of us, Napoleon would much prefer this attention," giving his partner a sour glance as she continued to lower the blade to the top of his pants, "You do know I have to put any damage you do to my clothes on my expense account which Waverly tends to frown upon," he attempted to ignore what she was doing which earned him a slap across the face. **

"**Hand it to me," she said pointing to the fireplace poker. **

**In the fire place, a poker was laying in the roaring fire, its tip turning a glowing red. Angelique's accepted it from one of the men who had plucked it out of the fire turning toward Illya. "The device, Mr. Kuryakin?" He tried to pull away as the hot poker came closer to his chest, "Where is it?" **

"**Sorry, but no," he answered through his clenched teeth. **

**As the hot metal neared his partner's chest, Solo spoke slowly but deadly pulling at his restraints, "Angelique don't do this." **

**She stopped her progress looking in his direction, seeing the anger and uncontrolled rage in his eyes; she passed the poker to her subordinate, "He's right. I might break a nail or something. Get the information," then walking to the door pulling out a cigarette, "I need a smoke." **

…**. **

**Angelique sat on the pouch, the tip of her cigarette the only brightness in the dark night. What was it between them? She slept with other enemies but this man at times tore at her soul, well maybe she didn't have one, but at least her heart. There was a spark between them that she couldn't understand, but she knew if their allegiances weren't so different, she could truly love this man. **

**She heard the stubborn Russian softly at first reacting to the torture but as the minutes ticked on his cries because louder. Napoleon's voice could also be heard, speaking to his partner, letting him know that he was not alone. **

**Soon, even Solo's voice turned from strength to pain when the poker turned toward him after his partner because unconscious. The silence of the room pulled her attention back to what was happening. Returning to the room she saw that Illya had passed out leaving only Napoleon aware glaring at her with pain, fury and hatred; his eyes saying 'I will not forgive you for this.' **

"**Did they say anything?" she asked diverting her attention away from those eyes. **

**The guard shook his head, "He passed out before he could; we just started on this one." **

**Without warning there was a tremendous explosion echoed through the building followed by the ground shaking which caused items to fall from the walls. Next the windows started to rattle imploding while walls were beginning to crumble inward. Red, yellow and orange flames gushed out of the other building. The two agents were in tipped from their chairs spilling them on the floor. **

**The wooden backs broke releasing them that allow Napoleon to untie his partner. He checked over his partner, who was semi-conscious helping him stand up. "Come on tovarisch; help me out as much as you can. We need to get out of here before someone remembers we're in here." **

**None of the Thrush agents shot at them as they were attempting to protect themselves from the resulting slides, leaving the UNCLE agents to battle the elements besides their injuries. The two men leaned on each other, moving slowly down the mountain side as loose rock slid down the slope. Although most of the snow was absent because of a smaller slide earlier in the day, what remained struck at the men making their descent more difficult. **

**As they reached the car, both men fell under the impact of the falling debris. While Napoleon could rise by himself, Illya was forced to lean against Solo while he struggled toward the car where his partner helped him into the passenger seat before climbing into it himself. **

**As the car raced toward the main highway, they looked into the rearview mirror to see Angelique near the ruins of the Swiss chalet standing with a gun pointing towards their fleeing car then her slowly dropping her hand by her side while turning away without firing. **

"**I do not understand how you always manage to draw the women in Thrush who are willing to kill you for their cause yet sleep with you when you ask." **

**The CEA turned in his seat with a smile on his lips; he knew that his partner had an argument but that question was something he didn't understand himself, but he was sure that he would continue to explore. **

…**. **

**Later that evening, Napoleon lay in the bed beside his partner in Geneva's UNCLE Medical where both would be staying overnight. Their torsos were wrapped in dressings covering the burns that they received from their experience with Angelique. **

**They had received a report from the clean-up crew that when they had arrived at the destroyed chalet, they found two only two of the men trapped under the wreckage. Angelique was long gone, and the men either didn't know where or refused to say. The machine was a lump of twisted metal while no part of it was salvageable, and the damage done by the explosion was minimum because of the earlier slide. **

**Their initial report to Waverly left him displeased about the machine's destruction but the miniature model and paperwork retrieved by them seemed to satisfy him. He ordered them to return to New York the following morning after discharge from medical with both items.**

…**. **

**Illya sat up in frustrated that his demands to be released had been overrode while his partner rested on the other bed. They had been assured that once the IV fluids had replaced their electrolyte and water loss, they would be released. **

"**These bandages itch, the IV's are limiting, and I do not think that we need to be observed again; we have no privacy with the staff coming in and out all the time. We spend more time in Medical than we do in our own apartments," he complained. **

"**Come on tovarisch, it's only for the night, beside this is the first time I been warm for more than a few minutes since this assignment began."**

"**I for one was more than warm enough when they used the poker on me," Illya said as he touched his chest.**

"**Okay, except for then. Now stop complaining and I will share what I had one of the secretaries sneak in for us," holding up a bag from the corner deli; his partner's eyes lit up as he grabbed for the food. "See, there are some benefits of being friendly with the staff," he kidded. **

**As they ate, a messenger brought in a package addressed to Kuryakin. After they had been assured that security had checked it out, Illya opened it. Inside there was a black turtleneck with a note, 'To help keep the expense account down. A.' **

**The two men looked at one another, "She does have style," Solo offered. The glare from his partner was priceless, causing Solo to burst into laughter as they finished their sandwiches.**

**...**

**Author note: Thanks to MLaw for encouragement and support during this time. Pat**


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